Laws, Even Minimally Enforced, Appear Effective in Increasing Bicycle Helmet Usage

The stick, rather than the carrot, may indeed be the best method to get bicyclists to wear helmets.

A total of 86 articles were examined, and from that total 11 studies from Canada, the United States, Australia and New Zealand, covering the period 1992-2005, examined bicycle helmet use in a diverse group of communities at various times – before and after the implementation of local helmet laws. Of these 11 studies, eight were published articles, two were published reports, and one was an unpublished article.

In all the studies, bicycle helmet usage increased after the implementation of helmet laws. Baseline helmet use varied from 4 to 59%. However after mandatory helmet legislation, helmet wearing rates varied from 37 to 91%. In one study, rates increased less than 10%, in four studies the increase was 10-30%, and in seven studies the wearing rate increased by more than 30%. The rate was particularly higher, according to the review, when the new helmet laws were targeted at a specific age group.

Results of this review supports the argument that even with minimal enforcement of new helmet laws, helmet wearing rates can increase significantly. The review suggests, however, that changing social norms about bicycle helmets, rather than fear of law enforcement, may also be contributing to the rising helmet usage rates.

Reference: Karkhaneh M, Kalenga JC, Hagel B, Rowe BH. Injury Prevention, 2006; 12:76-82

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